An air conditioner implying a cooler, a heater or both of them is classified into a window type and a split type. In the case of the cooler, a split type air conditioner includes an indoor unit installed indoors for cooling a room, and an outdoor unit connected to the indoor unit through refrigerant pipe lines and installed outdoors to contact air, for performing condensation heat exchange on a refrigerant gas in a condenser by using external air as a cooling medium, and supplying the condensed refrigerants to an evaporator of the indoor unit through the refrigerant pipe lines. The indoor unit is composed of the evaporator for performing cooling heat exchange for evaporating the refrigerants and absorbing evaporation heat from internal air, and a ventilating fan for circulating internal air, and the outdoor unit is composed of a compressor for compressing the refrigerant gas and supplying the compressed gas to the condenser, the air-cooled condenser for condensing the refrigerant gas from the compressor, and a cooling fan for forcibly ventilating external air to the air-cooled condenser to cool and condense the refrigerant gas. The compressor, the air-cooled condenser and the cooling fan of the outdoor unit are installed in an outdoor unit casing composing the outer appearance. The conventional hexahedral outdoor unit casing has an air suction unit for sucking air to the air-cooled condenser at its three sides, and an air discharge unit for externally discharging air absorbing condensation heat from the refrigerant gas by the heat exchange in the air-cooled condenser on its top surface.
However, the conventional outdoor unit for the air conditioner is restricted in installation spaces due to high density and strict environment regulations of cities, and increases civil applications due to noise and heat. Especially, a common residential area such as large-scaled apartment buildings regulates the outdoor units to be installed in indoor verandas to improve the appearance and prevent noise.
In order to solve the foregoing problems, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-101873 suggests an air conditioner mounted building where an indoor unit of an air conditioner is installed indoors or adjacent to a room intended to be air-conditioned, and an outdoor unit of the air conditioner is installed outdoors, wherein an opening is formed on the outer wall or roof, a louver is installed in the opening, the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is positioned in the louver, and suction/discharge of the indoor unit is performed through a gap between the louver plates.
In addition, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 3-213928 discloses a wall built-in type outdoor unit for an air conditioner including an outdoor unit main body for the air conditioner which is built in the wall and which includes a frame having the same size and thickness as the wall, a suction hole for heat exchange air installed on the same surface as the outdoor unit main body, and a discharge hole for heat exchanged air.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a conventional louver unit. Referring to FIG. 1, the louver unit 1 is divided into a suction area 7a and a discharge area 7b on a rectangular space inner wall formed on an outer wall 2 of a residential and/or commercial building, and a plurality of louver blades 8 which are externally protruded with the same length are installed in each area.
The suction area 7a of the louver unit 1 contacts a suction unit 11a of the outdoor unit, and the discharge area 7b of the louver unit 1 contacts a discharge unit 11b of the outdoor unit. That is, air is sucked through gaps between the louver blades 8 of the suction area 7a, supplied to the suction unit 11a of the outdoor unit, heat exchanged therein, discharged from the discharge unit 11b of the outdoor unit, and discharged through gaps between the louver blades 8 of the discharge area 7b of the louver unit 1.
Here, air heated due to the heat exchange operation and discharged through the louver blades 8 at the lower end of the discharge area 7b of the louver unit 1 is re-sucked through the louver blades 8 at the upper end of the suction area 7a of the louver unit 1. The re-sucked air may decrease efficiency during the heat exchange operation of the suction unit 11a of the outdoor unit.
In addition, the conventional arts relate merely to technologies for inserting the outdoor unit into a space formed on the outer wall of the building. That is, it is impossible to install the outdoor unit increased in volume and weight due to high air conditioning capacity in a built-in type.
Furthermore, one casing of the outdoor unit is designed to perform suction and discharge. It is thus difficult to transport and install the outdoor unit having a large weight and volume. In order to receive services for exchanging and repairing components of the outdoor unit, the whole casing must be disassembled.